Alec Oyhenart

Alec is the Director of Operations at Nordic Approach, where he focuses on the systems, structures, and operational processes behind sourcing and moving coffee across global markets. Originally from Fairfax, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., he has worked with us since the very. Beginning (2012), with a background spanning operations, sales, logistics, sourcing, and organisational development.

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Role and responsibility

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Alec focuses on the bigger picture of how Nordic Approach operates: from sourcing structures and logistics to internal systems, sales strategy, and long-term planning across multiple markets and producing countries.

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The role combines strategic thinking with a very practical approach to problem solving, helping ensure coffees move efficiently through complex supply chains while maintaining quality, transparency, and reliability throughout the process.

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Approach and ways of working

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A central part of his approach is building systems that support long-term consistency and clarity, both internally and externally. This includes balancing operational realities with the expectations of producers, exporters, roasters, and customers across different markets.

Experience and background

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Alec started working at Nordic Approach in 2012 after what he describes as “a series of hilarious misunderstandings.” He has been part of Nordic Approach since the very beginning, which means he’s quite literally had a hand in building almost every part of the company along the way.

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Before entering coffee, his background included work connected to climate change, politics, and software.

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Industry exposure

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He has travelled extensively through coffee-producing and consuming markets across five continents, working with producers, exporters, roasters, and partners throughout the supply chain. Has also participated in talks and discussions at various coffee events over the years, but we’ll let him speak for himself!

Perspective

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Alec places strong emphasis on clarity when buying coffee: both in terms of quality expectations and understanding what kind of company or relationship you want to build around coffee purchasing. He also highlights the importance of structure in coffee evaluation, describing acidity and clarity as the foundation that allows sweetness, fruit character, and flavour complexity to stand out.

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“Clarity and structure are the Christmas tree. Sweetness, fruit, and flavour notes are the ornaments. You can’t have Christmas without the tree.”

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Education

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Holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service – International Politics from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.